Consumers shopping for products have several options. The consumer may visit one or more traditional “brick-and-mortar” locations of various merchants, where they may see, touch, and try actual product(s) of interest that are on display and that are typically available in the inventory of the merchant. The consumer may make a purchase, and may then take the selected product with them. The inventory or products available for purchase at merchant locations is normally selected for sale by a buyer, based upon their past experience with similar products, and is limited by the space available for product display and storage, and any delays in deliveries of products to the merchant location by the supplier.
The consumer may also shop online using, for example, the Internet, may search the online product catalogs of various merchants for the desired product(s), and view product information and product reviews. Based on their own experiences and information gleaned from online sources, the consumer may then order and pay for the desired products, which the consumer may pick up at a brick-and-mortar location of the merchant, or may have shipped to a location of their choice such as, for example, their home or office. The consumer may make a purchase decision without ever having an opportunity to personally view, handle, or use any of the available products of interest.
Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditional approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such systems with some aspects of the present disclosure as set forth in the remainder of the present application with reference to the drawings.